Journaling: Pestiferous

A journal can be many things. For some, it is a place to pour out the heart. For others, it is a place to simply record the events of the day. For me, a journal has become pestiferous, infecting me with creativity.

My journaling is sporadic at best, but, I have been more engaged lately. I have been preparing to write a novel and had three very different ideas for the book. One idea is really a thinly veiled version of my last novel. One feels a little too ambitious for the moment. The third could be good, but it has some serious flaws. What to do? I grabbed my journal.

I took a few hours and wrote out all I knew about each story. I noted my feeling about the story in the borders. I began writing short bursts of scenes that had been floating around in my head. By the end, I found myself with a solid direction for the first half of my book. There are still plenty of flaws, but, many of the major decisions have already been made. When I sit down to begin writing on November 1, I'll be prepared and armed with a well-framed plot. Who could ask for more?

I tend to forget that my journal is really only for me. What I write in it does not have to be perfect, organized, or even make sense. My journal is simply a physical space for my thoughts. When I approach journaling like that, great pestiferous things happen.